As per my previous post on the future of private health inurance rebates for Bowen Therapy, the short-sighted federal government has instructed the private health insurers that they are to longer pay rebates on “natural” therapies from April 1st 2019.

The final set of business rules that we saw indicated that there would be room for the insurers to offer policies including natural therapies that didn’t attact the 30% government rebate on premiums, however a different set of rules was published that prohibits paying any rebate at all.

To say we are all disappointed is a huge understatement. And the point of reducing costs to consumers has already fallen over with one person I know receiving a letter from her insurer telling her all the things she can no longer claim, while simultaneously detailing her price rise.

It is somewhat beyond a campaigning stage now. You can ask your local member if they voted for these changes and punish them in the upcoming election if they did. Or, if you have a long memory and recall that this is the end result of changes brought about by John Howard, who wanted us to have an Americanised health system, you can vote according to that as well. You can also sit down and work out if you are getting value for money from your private health insurance. Would you be better moving to a different fund? Would you be better ditching extras cover altogether?

I have already had a few people ask me if I can bill their Bowen Therapy sessions as Remedial Massage. I can’t and I won’t. When you take out a policy with an insurer, you assign your rights in regard to your records. This essentially means that your insurer retains the right to inspect your records at any time, and if I’ve billed Bowen Therapy as Remedial Massage, I’m finished. It is fraud in their eyes and both parties would be liable for that fraud. Please don’t ask.